Kodachi stood before the entrance of caf� Toramaru and looked 
around a moment.  *Can that child really know anything the black rose 
would need to learn?  Still, if she could show me the way�*  Her eyes 
took a starry look as she visualized Mousse holding her in his arms 
against a background of flowers.  'My perfect black rose'  he said as 
he caressed her cheek with his hand then moved in to kiss her.
	"Having fun?"  Noriko had just leaned over Mousse's shoulder.  
Shaking herself out of her daydream Kodachi looked down at Noriko 
Saotome's grinning face.
	Kodachi scowled at her.
	Noriko's grin didn't change.  She glanced at her watch and 
commented, "Your right on time."  She stepped into the Caf� commenting, 
"Come on, food and conspiracy is always much better than conspiracy 
alone."

	"�Bang!  Shampoo knocked him out with one punch."  Noriko 
commented over her menu.  "She said that when Mousse didn't stop 
chasing her after that she decided to quit her plans to scare him off 
and hope that he'd eventually learn if she kept hitting him when he got 
too close."
	Kodachi looked down at her menu in silence for a moment.  Then 
she looked up and smiled.  "Ah the foolish girl, seeking to drive off a 
man of courage and dedication with punishment alone."  She ran her 
fingers through her hair and adopted a quick pose.  "With the proper 
enticement Mousse-sama will soon wonder why he wasted all that time on 
that purple haired bumpkin."
	Noriko scowled.  "That bumpkin is a close friend."  Then she 
smiled as she saw the waiter pausing by their table."  Ah, are you 
ready to order yet Kodachi?"  Not waiting for her reply Noriko tilted 
her menu toward the waiter and pointed out her order, "I want this, 
this, this and this!"
	"A-Are you sure?"
	Noriko scowled at the waiter, glanced at Kodachi who was now 
staring at her as well and folded her arms across her chest.  "Haven't 
you ever seen a growing girl before?"

	"AHHH!!  That hit the spot!"  Noriko commented as she put her 
chopsticks down on her plate.  Next to it were two bowls stacked on a 
small hotplate.  "Ok, now I hope I've clarified how important it is 
that you not scare him with over-enthusiasm.  Subtlety is the key.  You 
want that roll?"
	Kodachi looked at the remains of Noriko's meal, looked into her 
face, then passed the roll to her.  "I am fully capable of restraint, 
Mousse-Sama shall have no cause to fear my entreaties to his noble 
heart."
	"Good, you'll have to keep that in mind and not get nuts about 
living under the same roof.  Ah the check."
	Kodachi blinked as Noriko dropped the bill for the meal in 
front of her.  "Living under the same roof?"
	"Oh, did I forget to mention that I got your big brother to put 
him up in the Kuno Mansion?"  Noriko closed her eyes and lightly 
smacked her hand to her head.  "And I call my brother stupid."  Shaking 
her head she got up and walked to the exit.  Pausing long enough to 
deposit the Yen for the bill Kodachi followed her.
	As they left the store Noriko said.  "Yeah, well it was 
actually my friend Nabiki who set it up, it's the sort of thing that's 
best discussed over ice cream."

	"Large chocolate-vanilla twist."  The girl behind the counter 
said as she handed the ice cream cone to Noriko.  Who looked at it with 
a wide grin, and very happy eyes.  She licked a little of the ice cream 
while Kodachi paid the bill.
	"I'll have to remember this place."  Noriko commented as she 
walked away from the counter.  She bit a small mouthful of ice cream 
off the top.  "Mmm.  As I was saying I asked Nabiki to help me get Kuno 
to put him up at your mansion, and she talked with him for a few 
minutes and told me it was all set up.  So I talked to Mousse, and 
after I explained for the third time that camping out in our backyard 
was a bad idea, he agreed to let me find him someplace to stay 
locally." 

	Ranma sat in the corner of the Dojo looking at Shampoo and 
Akane.  At the beginning of the week he would have been certain that 
Shampoo would have been the only reasonable choice to fight in the 
contest.  Watching them now, it was clear that Akane's intense training 
coupled with Shampoo's decision to skip training sessions in favor of 
going out with a different guy every night left them very closely 
matched.  Shampoo still had a sizable advantage of both speed and 
strength, but� "Only use the tools, Shampoo."  Ranma called as he 
tossed a ball to bounce off her head.
	"Feh, Stupid toys."  Shampoo commented as she picked up a 
ribbon, and shifted into a ready stance as Akane rose to her feet and 
lifted a pair of gymnastic clubs.  Shampoo jumped foreword, lashing out 
at Akane with the Ribbon.  Akane dropped into a roll under the Ribbon's 
path, throwing three clubs as she rose to a kneeling position.  Shampoo 
deflected two clubs with the ribbon and twisted her body out of the way 
of the third.  Akane rose to her feet twirling the Ribbon she had 
picked up.  A second later the two began striking back and forth at 
each other with their ribbons.
	Ranma watched the duel for several minutes, ribbon against 
hoop, batons against balls, then glanced at his watch.  Rising to his 
feet he walked around the ribbonstorm that was filling the center of 
the Dojo.  At the door he paused and looked at the two combatants.  "Oh 
and remember, tomorrows the big day so if you can't decide who takes on 
Kodachi by 9:00, you're flipping a coin."

	 "Going somewhere?"  Nabiki asked as she looked at Ranma 
walking through the house.
	"I've got something in the works in the lab at my house, and I 
really can't put it off."
	"You have your own lab?"
	Ranma glanced at her, and grinned and leaned against the wall. 
 "Yep, When I was 8, I overheard mom arguing with dad about the costs 
of repairing the Dojo, so I organized a training trip at the Dojo of 
the masters of Martial Art Construction."  He grinned at the memory.  
"Three months of training and Pop and I learned enough to fix 
everything we broke.  And skipping a real long story, they used our 
Dojo a few weeks while they were settling some problems with a firm of 
Martial Art Lawyers."  Ranma shuddered a moment.  "Really unpleasant.  
Anyway as a combination training exercise, thank you gesture they built 
a big underground lab for me."
	"So what are you working on?"
	"Please, allow me a few secrets."

	Ranma carefully picked up a small rectangular piece of silvery 
metal with a pair of forceps.  He opened a black box with his other 
hand, and put the metal inside.  A few deft adjustments inside the box 
and he closed the lid.  He reached down to the sides of the box, where 
two hand sized plates of reddish metal where fastened.  Ranma placed 
his hand's on the plates and stood there concentrating.  A few moment's 
later he began to glow faintly with a blue aura.  Glancing at a 
collection of digital readouts on the table, he began to smile.

	In an unlit room, a telephone was ringing.  Then a light was 
turned on, revealing Ranma lying on a small cot massaging his forehead 
as he sat up.  Glancing at the near antique black phone by the lamp he 
had just turned on he picked up the headpiece and informed it "What?"
	"Ranma, listen to me.  You have to call the Tendo Dojo, NOW!"  
Noriko replied.
	Frowning, Ranma held down the button in the cradle, then 
reached down and started to input the Tendo's number in the rotary 
dial.  *Note to self, get a touch-tone phone for here.*  He had thought 
this every time he had to use the outdated machine.  Which averaged to 
about once every two months.
	"Moshi-Moshi." Kasumi's voice stated over the line.
	"Yes Noriko said I had to call you?"
	"Oh yes, just a second."  He could just hear Kasumi call for 
Nabiki, telling her who had called.
	"Ranma?"  It took Ranma a moment to recognize Nabiki's voice.  
He had never heard her sound worried before.
	"Nabiki?  What's wrong?  Kodachi didn't sneak in and try 
something did she?"
	"No, this was their own stupidity pure and simple.  Apparently 
at nine, they decided to follow your advice and flip for who took on 
Kodachi, but they couldn't agree who would be heads and tales so they 
had another match over THAT!  And then they couldn't agree about the 
outcome so they started another contest."  She paused to groan then 
sigh.  "When I got up this morning they were still at it.  I think 
Shampoo was winning but they both looked too exhausted for me to really 
say."
	Ranma  ran his hand through his hair with a groan.  "Great.  
How do they look?
	"They both collapsed five seconds after I got them to stop, and 
I can't decide whether or not to try waking them up.  Ranma, we can't 
forfeit this match.  I've rigged the betting pool I'm running to come 
out in the black no matter who wins, but that's only if I can collect 
on the bets against Kodachi managing to take out everyone competent on 
our side.  Unless I get can find a girl who can represent Furinkan and 
last at least a minuet the Dojo wouln't be able to afford anything 
besides rice for the next month."
	 Ranma sat there silently.  He knew what Nabiki wanted to ask. 
 He knew that honor demanded he agree.  He also knew that she wasn't 
asking because she knew how badly he wanted to throw honor to the wind 
and refuse in the name of masculine pride.  He sighed.  "You found her. 
 I'll ask mom to get me the outfit, and I'll meet you at St. Hebereke 
later."

	Ranma walked into the school with a shopping bag dangling from 
his left hand.  *Is there any way out of this?  No, there's still no 
way to get around having to do this.* he thought to himself as he 
walked through the halls, looking everywhere but at the bag he held.
	"You there, are you with the team from Furinkan?"  Asked a 
somewhat familiar voice ahead of him.  Focusing his attention he 
realized he had heard it a week before, it belonged to Kodachi Kuno who 
was standing in front of him in her school uniform with a smirk on her 
face.
	"Yep, the other contestants� aren't available."
	Kodachi sighed, "My open invitation to them to attend the match 
wasted!  And I so wanted Mousse-sama to see me against a capable 
opponent.  I hope you actually can fight me properly.  I'd so hate to 
loose the chance to defeat you because you drew to many penalties from 
weaponless attacks."
	"You should worry about loosing the match."  Ranma responded, 
forcing herself to grin slightly.

	Ranma stood in her corner of the ring, trying to ignore the 
feeling of the tights she was wearing.  *I can't hold back just because 
she's a girl.  I have to go all out and fight as hard as I can.  I 
chose to fight, and I will do everything in my power to win.*
	"Your name?"  The referee asked.
	"Ranko Saotome."
	"Ranko Saotome Challenging!"  The referee declared to the 
crowd.  She turned to point to the opposing corner.  "The champion 
Kodachi Kuno!"

	Ranma stood at the opposite side of the ring as Kodachi.  Both 
were breathing heavily from the effort of the fight.  Kodachi suddenly 
pulled a ball from nowhere and tossed it at Ranma.  Ranma dropped into 
a roll to avoid it, then was knocked to the mat as it exploded.
	"An Opening!"  Kodachi yelled as she jumped at Ranma swinging a 
pair of gymnastic clubs at her.  Ranma grabbed a nearby hoop and 
twirled it around her wrist as she rolled to the side.  As she rose to 
a kneeling position she grabbed the hoop by the edge and with a quick 
twist looped it around the spot where Kodachi's arms were supposed to 
be.  Rising to her feet Ranma rotated the hoop attempting to snare 
Kodachi with it.  Kodachi avoided the attack, though the clubs were 
pulled from her grasp.
	Ranma spun the hoop around his wrist, advancing at Kodachi 
quickly, however she cartwheeled away, grabbing a ribbon and hoop of 
her own off the mat as she went.  Flipping to the side opposite Ranma, 
she threw her hoop at him as she landed.  It struck his hoop splitting 
it in half.  She instantly followed up with her ribbon.  Ranma 
countered with her own ribbon.  The ribbon's lashed at each other in 
the center of the ring, then Ranma shifted stances as Kodachi's ribbon 
wrapped round her right wrist, trapping her own ribbon.  
	Kodachi pulled at the ribbon, and Ranma pulled back.   Ranma's 
arm was pulled toward Kodachi, then with an effort she drew it back 
toward her own body.  Then with a slight smile she jumped foreword her 
right hand shooting foreword to catch the slack ribbon and snap a fast 
loop through it.  The loop snapped around Kodachi's wrist, then another 
snap threw her into the air.
	Kodachi pulled out a small whistle, looked where she was going, 
then dropped it.

	"Ranko Saotome!"  The Referee stated raising Ranma's hand above 
her head.

	In the audience Kodachi was standing against Mousse, her head 
buried in his chest.  "Oh Mousse-sama, you saved me again!"  Before 
Mousse could conceive of anything intelligible to stammer in reply, she 
pushed herself away.    Holding herself Kodachi shook her head, tears 
streaming down her cheeks.  "But no!  I entered this match to prove the 
strength of my love for you, but I failed!  My love is not strong 
enough to be worthy of you!"  She turned away, crouching with her hands 
to her face.
	"Er, No� You fought well, I mean my heart belongs to Shampoo, 
but your�"
	Kodachi pivoted and grabbed his hands.  "Don't say anything, 
Mousse-Sama.  I will dedicate myself from this day to become worthy of 
you!"  Releasing his hands she turned and ran toward her dressing room. 
 Mousse stood there, looking after her, and glancing at his hands.

	Ranma followed Nabiki into the house, male once again and 
dressed in his usual red shirt with black pants.  "That was an 
experience I don't want to repeat."  He commented.
	"But you looked so cute in that leotard."  Nabiki commented.  
Snapping her fingers she added, "Oh that reminds he, Noriki wanted you 
to have this, as a memento of the fight."  She pulled a videotape from 
her purse and extended it to him.
	Ranma glanced at the copy of Mel Brooks "Robin Hood, Men in 
Tights" With a quiet growl he stalked away.
	"Hello!  Is something the matter Ranma?"  Kasumi proclaimed as 
she walked out of the kitchen.
	Ranma directed a scowl at her, then sighed as she failed to 
react to it.  "No, my sister's just demonstrating her warped sense of 
Humor."
	"Oh, there's nothing warped about Noriko,"  Nabiki commented.  
"Oh and have Shampoo and Akane woken up yet?"
	"I don't think so."
	"If they had you'd know."
	Ranma directed a suspicious glance at Nabiki

	Shampoo stood arms spread wide accepting the cheers of the 
crowd.  Kodachi lay at her feet, apologizing for challenging her.  
Ranma jumped into the ring and grabbed her in a joyous embrace.  No 
wait he had suddenly turned female, and he was griping her tighter.  
The dream dissolved.
	Akane stood arms spread wide accepting the cheers of the crowd. 
 Shampoo was bowing to her and declaring that she was the better 
martial artist.  Ranma jumped into the ring and grabbed her in a joyous 
embrace.  No wait he had suddenly turned female, and he was griping her 
tighter.  The dream dissolved
	Both girls opened their eyes slowly, looking to see each 
other's face.  Their awakening minds calmly took stock of the 
situation.  They were in the same bed.  They both had their arms around 
each other.  They had no clothes on.  Some sort of reaction was 
necessary.
	"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!"  They separated themselves 
like two magnets of identical poles.

	 Ranma pivoted toward the stairs as a pair of screams erupted 
on the second floor.  Climbing the stairs in three jumps, he ran to the 
source of the screams.  Akane's room.
	"Are you�  Gyaah!"  Ranma pivoted away from the sight.  On the 
bed Akane had stood in a vaguely defensive stance clutching a sheet to 
her chest with one arm, the other extended in a vaguely martial arts 
posture.  Opposite stood Shampoo, wearing nothing but her hair 
ornaments.  She was also standing in a rough approximation of a martial 
arts stance, with one hand poised as though checking her body for 
something.  "Didn't see anything, didn't see anything, if I did see 
anything I'm not admitting it."  Ranma stated to himself as he walked 
away from the room.
	Akane's voice called out in a fierce tone promising 
retribution, "Nabiki!"